Men's Basketball

Men's Basketball Heads to Redding to Take on Simpson University Tuesday Night

Next Game
Santa Clara begins a stretch of seven games on the road on Tuesday, Nov. 13 with a game against Simpson University. The game will tip off at 6 p.m. PT and will be played at Shasta College in senior Brody Angley's hometown of Redding, Calif. The two teams have never met and a big crowd is expected for Angley's homecoming. Fans can follow the game on 1220 KNTS or at SantaClaraBroncos.com.

Angley Returns Home
Senior Brody Angley returns to his hometown of Redding, Calif. Tuesday night for the game against Simpson University. The game will be played at Shasta College against Simpson. Angley was a standout basketball and football player at Enterprise High School in Redding. He helped lead Enterprise to four league and section championships and two state semifinal appearances in his high school career. He was a four-time league MVP and a two-time section MVP during that time. He also set the Northern Section record for career rushing yards with 4,650 yards as a running back. He scored 74 touchdowns during his career at Enterprise. The game will be the first ever between Simpson and Santa Clara.

Head Coach Kerry Keating
Santa Clara University named Kerry Keating head coach on April 6, 2007. In his first season on the Mission Campus, Keating, 36, comes to SCU with a long coaching backgroud at a number of top programs. Most recently, Keating helped UCLA reach back-to-back Final Fours as an assistant coach on Ben Howland's staff in Westwood. He has also served as an assistant at Tennessee, Tulsa, Appalachian State, Seton Hall, Vanderbilt and Wake Forest.

Last Game
Center John Bryant got off to a great start with 26 points and 14 rebounds to lead Santa Clara to a 66-49 win in the season opener on Nov. 9. Bryant scored 18 in the first half as SCU got out to a 32-18 halftime lead. SCU held the Otters to 28 percent shooting in the game to earn the victory. Sophomore Jonathan Gunderson scored a career-high 14 points, including two second-half 3-pointers, while classmate Cedric Latimer pulled down eight rebounds and had four assists for SCU.

Season Openers
Santa Clara has now won four straight season-opening games after the team's win against CSU Monterey Bay on Nov. 9. The Broncos defeated Holy Names last year, while knocking of CSU Stanislaus in 2005-06 and Duquesne in 2004-05.

Angley In Top 10
Senior point guard Brody Angley had 119 assists last season, giving him 342 career assists coming into this season. With two assists against CSU Monterey Bay he has now tied Harold Keeling (1981-85) for seventh all-time with 344.

Angley More Top 10sBrody Angley also finds himself in the Top 10 all-time in steals at SCU with 126. He is ninth all-time. Along with steals, Angley should find himself in the Top 10 all-time in games started as well. The Redding, Calif. native enow has 81 starts, five shy of Londale Theus (1976-80), who started 86 games. Angley has an opportunity to end his career second all-time if he starts 28 games this season. The all-time leader is Brian Jones (1996-01) with 116 starts. Kurt Rambis (1976-80) is second with 107.

Bryant Moving Up
Center John Bryant blocked 49 shots last season, surpassing his 37 from the 2005-06 season. Bryant's 49 blocks are the third highest single season total in school history. He surpassed Jens Gordon (1987-88), who had 48. After four blocks in the season-opener, Bryant now has 90 career blocks, a total that places him fourth all-time in blocks in SCU history. He is three behind Kurt Rambis (1976-80), who had 93 in his career.

Bryant Ties Career High
Junior center John Bryant tied his career high with 26 points in the Broncos' season-opening win over Cal State Monterey Bay. Bryant also had 26 against Pepperdine on Feb. 26, 2007. The Broncos center also pulled down 14 rebounds and had four blocks in the win. It was Bryant's first double-double this year after posting five in 2006-07.

Assistant Coaches: Young and Experienced
Santa Clara's assistant coaches, Lamont Smith, Sam Scuilli and Sam Scholl are all under 40 years old, but they are some of the most experienced coaches when it comes to the West Coast Conference. The trio has over 30 years of combined coaching and playing experience in WCC games.

Gunner Heats Up
Sophomore Jonathan Gunderson did not see much action last year as a freshman, but he made up for that in his first game as a sophomore on Nov. 9. "Gunner" scored a career high 14 points and hit all four of his free throws, while dishing out two assists and grabbing four rebounds. One of his two 3-pointers came from near midcourt to beat the 35-second shot clock.

Stuffing the Stat Sheet
Freshman Ben Dowdell and sophomore Cedric Latimer had solid all-around games against the Otters on Nov. 9. Dowdell scored only two points, but the Australian native grabbed five rebounds and led the team with six assists, while also recording a block. Latimer scored five points, pulled down a career high eight rebounds and also dished out four assists.

Newcomers
The 2007-08 Broncos are young team. The team features 10 newcomers and eight freshmen on the roster. Only four players on the team averaged more than 10 minutes a game in 2006-07, Brody Angley, John Bryant, Mitch Henke and Josh Higgins.

Injury Update
Santa Clara has been hit by the injury bug during the preseason, as a number of players have missed practice time due to injuries. Right now, the team has four players out of action due to injury. Senior Josh Higgins has a left knee injury that will keep him out of the lineup for 4-5 weeks. Junior Calvin Johnson is out with a low back injury. Freshman Andrew Zimmermann has been battling a back problem during the preseason and is also out for SCU. Finally, freshman Scott Thompson is still recovering from an appendectomy and is unavailable for the Broncos.

First Australian
Santa Clara has had players from many different parts of the world during its long basketball history. However, freshman Ben Dowdell is the first Australian to suit up for the Broncos. Dowdell is from North Nowra, New South Wales in Australia.